Site search
sponsored by
Home
News
ENLARGE
Laurie and David Lester outside Willow Pond Bed and Breakfast, located at 662 26 Rd. The Lesters bought the bed and breakfast last June and opened the inn March 1.
Grand Junction CO Colorado
Grand Junction — You don’t necessarily have to go far to get away from it all.
Ever since Willow Pond Bed and Breakfast, on 662 26 Rd., opened March 1, they’ve had guests from South Dakota, Santa Cruz, England and even Grand Junction.
“People have come here to hide,” said Laurie Lester, who owns the B & B with her husband David. Locals have come who needed a little get-away but didn’t want to travel too far.
It’s not your typical inn. It’s also an art gallery. A place to showcase — and sell — the work of local artists.
Laurie connected with the local art scene after seeing Piera Kllanxhja’s pottery at the Western Colorado Center for the Arts.
“I saw Piera’s work and I thought this should be in a museum. So I got her card hoping she’d refer artists to me,” Laurie said. “She graciously offered to display her work here.”
Since then, paintings and pottery by Peg Oswald have been added to the shelves and walls. On Wednesday, artist Barbara Taylor brought her paintings by.
“When (guests) check in we tell them most of the art you see is for sale. All the proceeds go to the artists. We want to promote the local artists,” Laurie said.
The Lesters are artistic themselves. Fourteen-year-old daughter Sarah does detailed pencil drawings. Her 8-year-old brother Brian — like both of his parents — is a musician.
On Sunday afternoon, Laurie will perform a house concert of Renaissance music on her Appalachian mountain dulcimer. She hopes to bring in local musicians for the monthly summertime concerts.
There’s been wine tasting, gourmet cooking classes taught by DMT Catering, and a wedding since Willow Pond opened two months ago. Another wedding is scheduled for June.
Although only minutes from Patterson Road, looking out the huge east-facing living room window, you might as well be in the country. Past the pond and wooden fence that borders their property, there’s an open field. Nearby neighbors have farm animals.
“We have an owl that comes and stays with us once in awhile,” David said.
It’s a major switch from what they were accustomed to in California where they resided before buying the bed and breakfast last June.
Both had good jobs in Lakewood, a suburb of Los Angeles. Laurie was a church choir director for 11 years, and David was a city photographer.
It was a lifestyle that was too convenient, said David. He could see them getting locked into it. And their kids couldn’t play outside without fear of being kidnapped.
“We wanted a better place for our kids to grow up; we wanted to get away from city life, smog,” David said.
So they went bed and breakfast shopping. They looked at places in Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and in other parts of Colorado. They came to Grand Junction last year on spring break and fell in love with Willow Pond. A “country setting in town,” David likes to call it.
They’ve quickly embraced the local culture. Not only by giving exposure to Grand Valley artists, but in other ways as well. They get their soaps from local soapmaker Canyon Spirits Soaps. The coffee served in the morning is from Tucan Coffee House in Palisade.
The three upstairs bedrooms can accommodate up to 10 guests. Each bedroom has its own private bathroom. Two of them have whirl pool jet tubs. The $99-$150 rooms — based on a two-person occupancy — include a full breakfast of Laurie’s “signature” Norwegian pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream, herbed potatoes, scrambled eggs and bacon, and coffee. And there’s always a pastry to snack on in the afternoon.
Typically, everyone eats together around the big kitchen table next to a huge window overlooking the pastoral back yard. In the summertime, guests can have their breakfast outside on the patio.
In the living room there are three comfortable sofas, a piano, a mini-fridge stocked with sodas and water, and microwave. A photograph by local artist Vera Mulder sits atop the piano. That one’s not for sale — it was a housewarming gift.
People interested in attending the Renaissance dulcimer concert Sunday at 3 p.m. can reserve a seat by calling the Lesters at 243-4958, or e-mail them at innkeeper@willowpondbnb.com. A classical music for dulcimer concert is scheduled for June 3. Refreshments will be served. Donations are accepted.
Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.
Grand Junction — You don’t necessarily have to go far to get away from it all.
Ever since Willow Pond Bed and Breakfast, on 662 26 Rd., opened March 1, they’ve had guests from South Dakota, Santa Cruz, England and even Grand Junction.
“People have come here to hide,” said Laurie Lester, who owns the B & B with her husband David. Locals have come who needed a little get-away but didn’t want to travel too far.
It’s not your typical inn. It’s also an art gallery. A place to showcase — and sell — the work of local artists.
Laurie connected with the local art scene after seeing Piera Kllanxhja’s pottery at the Western Colorado Center for the Arts.
“I saw Piera’s work and I thought this should be in a museum. So I got her card hoping she’d refer artists to me,” Laurie said. “She graciously offered to display her work here.”
Since then, paintings and pottery by Peg Oswald have been added to the shelves and walls. On Wednesday, artist Barbara Taylor brought her paintings by.
“When (guests) check in we tell them most of the art you see is for sale. All the proceeds go to the artists. We want to promote the local artists,” Laurie said.
The Lesters are artistic themselves. Fourteen-year-old daughter Sarah does detailed pencil drawings. Her 8-year-old brother Brian — like both of his parents — is a musician.
On Sunday afternoon, Laurie will perform a house concert of Renaissance music on her Appalachian mountain dulcimer. She hopes to bring in local musicians for the monthly summertime concerts.
There’s been wine tasting, gourmet cooking classes taught by DMT Catering, and a wedding since Willow Pond opened two months ago. Another wedding is scheduled for June.
Although only minutes from Patterson Road, looking out the huge east-facing living room window, you might as well be in the country. Past the pond and wooden fence that borders their property, there’s an open field. Nearby neighbors have farm animals.
“We have an owl that comes and stays with us once in awhile,” David said.
It’s a major switch from what they were accustomed to in California where they resided before buying the bed and breakfast last June.
Both had good jobs in Lakewood, a suburb of Los Angeles. Laurie was a church choir director for 11 years, and David was a city photographer.
It was a lifestyle that was too convenient, said David. He could see them getting locked into it. And their kids couldn’t play outside without fear of being kidnapped.
“We wanted a better place for our kids to grow up; we wanted to get away from city life, smog,” David said.
So they went bed and breakfast shopping. They looked at places in Washington, Oregon, Arizona, and in other parts of Colorado. They came to Grand Junction last year on spring break and fell in love with Willow Pond. A “country setting in town,” David likes to call it.
They’ve quickly embraced the local culture. Not only by giving exposure to Grand Valley artists, but in other ways as well. They get their soaps from local soapmaker Canyon Spirits Soaps. The coffee served in the morning is from Tucan Coffee House in Palisade.
The three upstairs bedrooms can accommodate up to 10 guests. Each bedroom has its own private bathroom. Two of them have whirl pool jet tubs. The $99-$150 rooms — based on a two-person occupancy — include a full breakfast of Laurie’s “signature” Norwegian pancakes with strawberries and whipped cream, herbed potatoes, scrambled eggs and bacon, and coffee. And there’s always a pastry to snack on in the afternoon.
Typically, everyone eats together around the big kitchen table next to a huge window overlooking the pastoral back yard. In the summertime, guests can have their breakfast outside on the patio.
In the living room there are three comfortable sofas, a piano, a mini-fridge stocked with sodas and water, and microwave. A photograph by local artist Vera Mulder sits atop the piano. That one’s not for sale — it was a housewarming gift.
People interested in attending the Renaissance dulcimer concert Sunday at 3 p.m. can reserve a seat by calling the Lesters at 243-4958, or e-mail them at innkeeper@willowpondbnb.com. A classical music for dulcimer concert is scheduled for June 3. Refreshments will be served. Donations are accepted.
Reach Sharon Sullivan at ssullivan@gjfreepress.com.
